To provide a double glazed window with the appearance of a tranditional divided lite window having smaller panes separated by conventional muntin bars, it is customary to provide intersecting muntin bars between the panes of glass. To permit air between the panes to circulate over the muntin bar dividers, spacers called bumper buttons are adhered to the outer faces of the muntin bars or to cruciform connections joining the bars. Providing these buttons and assembling them during the production of the window adds cost to the product.
The internal muntin bars are usually assembled in a cruciform design, one bar intersecting another at right angles. To accommodate windows of varying size, tubular muntin bars are cut to the desired length and assembled with a plastic cruciform connector having four plugs disposed at 90.degree. to each other, which slide into the open ends of tubular muntin bars. The bars are uniform and generally rectangular in cross section. The design is modular, it being necessary only to cut the bars to length and assemble them with the plastic cruciform connector. One of the problems in using plastic connectors is that gases and particulate matter evolve from the plastic material forming the cruciform connector at the high temperatures that prevail between the glass panes when exposed to sun light. These materials, such as polyethylene, polypropylene and some nylon compositions, may fog the glass, especially if the area enclosed by the muntin bars forming one lite does not permit air circulation within the entire space between the panes. Materials emitted by the connectors may include wax products, light oils, silicones and other materials present in the manufacturing process of the connectors.